Sarcasm & A Gun
Mar 3, 2016 20:19:48 GMT -5
Post by Ruby Tyler on Mar 3, 2016 20:19:48 GMT -5
February 24th, 2016
White Lion Wrestling’s first show had ended a couple of hours ago and Ruby was back in her motel room with takeout and the remote, flipping through the channels to find something remotely entertaining. She was lying on her stomach, feet up on the pillows with one tucked underneath her chest. The match had taken a lot out of her, physically and emotionally. Teaming with Hardaway was a new experience, and one that she didn't know if she wanted to repeat. They had worked together without major incident since January and Ruby was getting used to him being around, but she wasn't sure that she liked him and she couldn't bring herself to trust him. After everything they had been through, he seemed to be okay with the idea of putting his faith in her, but maybe that was due to her own failure to hospitalize him the way he had done to her.
Their partnership wasn't sitting well with her brothers, either. Masato and Tsurugi had their own ways of going about it, but each of them had expressed their concerns about her working with Hardaway, and she couldn't deny their reasoning. And they didn’t even know about the nights that Ruby herself wouldn’t admit had happened, nights in which Ruby had let go of things like logic and reason so that she could indulge in her more primal desires. Granted, since she’d shoved him into a coffin and then a hearse in early December, nothing had happened between them. Once the kill switch had been pulled on EXODUS, Ruby had left the company and everyone in it behind for the significantly colder shores of Maryland.
Or so she’d thought, until she’d gotten that phone call after the New Year.
The whole situation was more complicated than she wanted to think about, so she settled on American Pickers and opened up the takeout container with her burger and fries. And for awhile, it was absolute zen. Ruby stretched out and groaned as she cracked her back, listening to the two guys on the show argue over the price of other people's trash. This was archaeology for the twenty-first century, sifting through the oddball bits of Americana that piled up in garages and basements across the country. Some days she wondered if she was making the right choice by coming out of retirement, but seeing the thrill on the hosts’ faces as they dug up some old Coca-Cola sign or a bicycle from the Great Depression, she knew that typical artifacts would never do it for her. Her destiny lay in the esoteric, no matter how hard she tried to escape it.
But there were nights like this, when the world wasn’t in danger of ending, she didn’t have to deal with her rookie hunter, and Ruby could actually get a break for a few hours. And while a motel room in Nashville probably wasn’t the ideal getaway location, for her it was just as good as some five-star spa resort. After her food was done, Ruby settled back down on the bed and clutched the pillow to her chest. Her eyes drifted shut, but she didn’t quite fall asleep. Instead, she luxuriated in the peace and quiet. For once she didn’t have homework, or training, or Hardaway’s lame pop culture references to deal with. She could just be for the first time since she’d left California.
That was, until her phone rang and interrupted her zen time. Looking at the screen, Ruby groaned and picked up, rolling over onto her back.
“Yeah?"
“Ruby Theresa Tyler, is that how you answer the phone for your mother?”
“When I’ve just gotten done with a match and you’re interrupting my me time, yes. What do you need, Mom? Something with the house?”
“I don’t only call you to discuss legal matters, Ruby. Sometimes I want to talk to my daughter and find out things about her life. Like why she decided to move across the country two months ago without telling me.”
Ruby sighed heavily, pushing herself up into a sitting position and swinging her legs towards the floor.
“I got into University of Maryland’s psych program for graduate school. So I packed all my stuff in my car and headed out east. And given that I didn’t really have a permanent address for two years, I’m kind of surprised you’re complaining about this now.”
“I didn’t know that you were applying. I didn't know you had plans to leave California again after the company you were working for closed. Your nephews were very upset by that, by the way, even though personally I thought some of those matches were incredibly inappropriate and that they shouldn't have been watching anyway. But your brother-in-law, you know how-”
“No, actually I don't. I met Bill once, remember? And stop referring to Greg’s grandkids as my nieces and nephews. Greg isn't my father and his girls aren't my sisters.”
Now it was Nora Tyler’s turn to sigh and probably roll her eyes. Though she wasn't physically present to give her daughter her patented look of exasperation and disappointment, Nora had given Ruby that look enough times over the years that she knew it had to be happening now.
“Ruby. I know you're still upset about the circumstances of the separation and then your father's death, but Greg and his daughters are a part of my life and I'd like them to be a part of yours as well. And both Leanna and Melissa have friends around your age, nice young men with good jobs. Maybe it might be time to consider settling down? After all, you're going to be twenty-six this year, and the only man that's ever been mentioned in connection with you is that Ken Hartigan person…”
“Hartigan? I don't - oh god you mean Hardaway don’t you? No. Please. Mom. Definitely not.”
“Good. The boys were watching that match in which you kissed him, so naturally we all thought… I'm glad to hear it's nothing. You can do better for yourself than that.”
Biting her lower lip, Ruby worked through a number of thoughts in her head. She didn't want to defend Hardaway, but at the same time, agreeing with her mother didn't quite sit right with her either.
“Look, can we not talk about this? I'll call you soon, okay?”
“Ruby. Whether you like it or not, I'm still your mother. I worry about you being alone out there. You can't simply rely on sarcasm and a gun.”
“You say that every time, Mom.”
“And someday you'll see that I'm right. I realize you don't approve of Greg or how things between him and I happened -”
“He was the reason you and Dad were getting a divorce!”
“Regardless. You can't be an island unto yourself, Ruby. You need people. And I'd wager there's someone out there who needs you, too. Call me soon?”
“Yeah, sure. Thanks for the life advice.”
“Thanks for letting me give it. I love you, Ruby.”
“Love you too Mom.”
Once the line disconnected, Ruby let her phone fall onto the floor and groaned as she threw herself backward, her hands covering her face. For years now her mother had been trying to convince her to move closer to Glendale so that she could become part of the weird blended family Nora Tyler and Greg Murphy had started. Aside from the fact that her mother had been having an affair with Greg, Ruby needed to keep her mother safe from all the weirdness that she had inherited as a result of being Hank Tyler’s daughter. Life with Greg and his girls and their kids was blessedly normal, and Ruby couldn't deny her mother that.
Especially not when her own life just kept getting stranger and more dangerous by the minute.
White Lion Wrestling’s first show had ended a couple of hours ago and Ruby was back in her motel room with takeout and the remote, flipping through the channels to find something remotely entertaining. She was lying on her stomach, feet up on the pillows with one tucked underneath her chest. The match had taken a lot out of her, physically and emotionally. Teaming with Hardaway was a new experience, and one that she didn't know if she wanted to repeat. They had worked together without major incident since January and Ruby was getting used to him being around, but she wasn't sure that she liked him and she couldn't bring herself to trust him. After everything they had been through, he seemed to be okay with the idea of putting his faith in her, but maybe that was due to her own failure to hospitalize him the way he had done to her.
Their partnership wasn't sitting well with her brothers, either. Masato and Tsurugi had their own ways of going about it, but each of them had expressed their concerns about her working with Hardaway, and she couldn't deny their reasoning. And they didn’t even know about the nights that Ruby herself wouldn’t admit had happened, nights in which Ruby had let go of things like logic and reason so that she could indulge in her more primal desires. Granted, since she’d shoved him into a coffin and then a hearse in early December, nothing had happened between them. Once the kill switch had been pulled on EXODUS, Ruby had left the company and everyone in it behind for the significantly colder shores of Maryland.
Or so she’d thought, until she’d gotten that phone call after the New Year.
The whole situation was more complicated than she wanted to think about, so she settled on American Pickers and opened up the takeout container with her burger and fries. And for awhile, it was absolute zen. Ruby stretched out and groaned as she cracked her back, listening to the two guys on the show argue over the price of other people's trash. This was archaeology for the twenty-first century, sifting through the oddball bits of Americana that piled up in garages and basements across the country. Some days she wondered if she was making the right choice by coming out of retirement, but seeing the thrill on the hosts’ faces as they dug up some old Coca-Cola sign or a bicycle from the Great Depression, she knew that typical artifacts would never do it for her. Her destiny lay in the esoteric, no matter how hard she tried to escape it.
But there were nights like this, when the world wasn’t in danger of ending, she didn’t have to deal with her rookie hunter, and Ruby could actually get a break for a few hours. And while a motel room in Nashville probably wasn’t the ideal getaway location, for her it was just as good as some five-star spa resort. After her food was done, Ruby settled back down on the bed and clutched the pillow to her chest. Her eyes drifted shut, but she didn’t quite fall asleep. Instead, she luxuriated in the peace and quiet. For once she didn’t have homework, or training, or Hardaway’s lame pop culture references to deal with. She could just be for the first time since she’d left California.
That was, until her phone rang and interrupted her zen time. Looking at the screen, Ruby groaned and picked up, rolling over onto her back.
“Yeah?"
“Ruby Theresa Tyler, is that how you answer the phone for your mother?”
“When I’ve just gotten done with a match and you’re interrupting my me time, yes. What do you need, Mom? Something with the house?”
“I don’t only call you to discuss legal matters, Ruby. Sometimes I want to talk to my daughter and find out things about her life. Like why she decided to move across the country two months ago without telling me.”
Ruby sighed heavily, pushing herself up into a sitting position and swinging her legs towards the floor.
“I got into University of Maryland’s psych program for graduate school. So I packed all my stuff in my car and headed out east. And given that I didn’t really have a permanent address for two years, I’m kind of surprised you’re complaining about this now.”
“I didn’t know that you were applying. I didn't know you had plans to leave California again after the company you were working for closed. Your nephews were very upset by that, by the way, even though personally I thought some of those matches were incredibly inappropriate and that they shouldn't have been watching anyway. But your brother-in-law, you know how-”
“No, actually I don't. I met Bill once, remember? And stop referring to Greg’s grandkids as my nieces and nephews. Greg isn't my father and his girls aren't my sisters.”
Now it was Nora Tyler’s turn to sigh and probably roll her eyes. Though she wasn't physically present to give her daughter her patented look of exasperation and disappointment, Nora had given Ruby that look enough times over the years that she knew it had to be happening now.
“Ruby. I know you're still upset about the circumstances of the separation and then your father's death, but Greg and his daughters are a part of my life and I'd like them to be a part of yours as well. And both Leanna and Melissa have friends around your age, nice young men with good jobs. Maybe it might be time to consider settling down? After all, you're going to be twenty-six this year, and the only man that's ever been mentioned in connection with you is that Ken Hartigan person…”
“Hartigan? I don't - oh god you mean Hardaway don’t you? No. Please. Mom. Definitely not.”
“Good. The boys were watching that match in which you kissed him, so naturally we all thought… I'm glad to hear it's nothing. You can do better for yourself than that.”
Biting her lower lip, Ruby worked through a number of thoughts in her head. She didn't want to defend Hardaway, but at the same time, agreeing with her mother didn't quite sit right with her either.
“Look, can we not talk about this? I'll call you soon, okay?”
“Ruby. Whether you like it or not, I'm still your mother. I worry about you being alone out there. You can't simply rely on sarcasm and a gun.”
“You say that every time, Mom.”
“And someday you'll see that I'm right. I realize you don't approve of Greg or how things between him and I happened -”
“He was the reason you and Dad were getting a divorce!”
“Regardless. You can't be an island unto yourself, Ruby. You need people. And I'd wager there's someone out there who needs you, too. Call me soon?”
“Yeah, sure. Thanks for the life advice.”
“Thanks for letting me give it. I love you, Ruby.”
“Love you too Mom.”
Once the line disconnected, Ruby let her phone fall onto the floor and groaned as she threw herself backward, her hands covering her face. For years now her mother had been trying to convince her to move closer to Glendale so that she could become part of the weird blended family Nora Tyler and Greg Murphy had started. Aside from the fact that her mother had been having an affair with Greg, Ruby needed to keep her mother safe from all the weirdness that she had inherited as a result of being Hank Tyler’s daughter. Life with Greg and his girls and their kids was blessedly normal, and Ruby couldn't deny her mother that.
Especially not when her own life just kept getting stranger and more dangerous by the minute.
So, my first match in FGA. It's been a long, strange trip to get here and now that it's time for me to introduce this audience to the Huntress, I find I'm up against a guy who gets suplexed by giant teddy bears and who has a weird thing for Aries Reed. Which, you know, I try not to judge, but I think you could do better, Nero. As a competitor, Aries is fierce. As a person?
...Eh, let’s not go there.
Anyway. I was hoping for a fresh start here in FGA, and it looks like right now, I'm getting my wish. I've faced off against at least three people in this company, and there are others whose names I recognize from where I worked before. But across that mat at Vertigo there's going to be you. Nero. Named after a Roman emperor whose penchant for violence and extravagance turned the citizens of his empire against him in rather spectacular fashion. Most ancient accounts describe him as batshit crazy towards the end, too.
Which should freak me out just a little, the idea that you could be like your ancient namesake. But after the year I had last year? It's going to take a lot more than your run of the mill lunacy to throw me off my game. Truth is, I'm happy I've got this match. I spent most of last year fighting the same person, again and again, and taking it to new levels of pain and suffering. I lost a lot of blood and probably more than a few brain cells given all the chair shots I took. Got to the point where I feel like I might’ve forgotten what it’s like to be in a plain old wrestling match, not a fight to the death grudge match with crazy ass stipulations.
So let’s get out there, Nero, and give the fans a great show. But there’s one thing you should probably know…
Savannah Taylor couldn’t put me down.
Aries Reed couldn’t put me down.
Kevin Hardaway couldn’t put me down.
So you better give me the best you got, Nero, or else you’re gonna be the next trophy on the Huntress’s wall.